Butter-cutting machine.



PATENTED NOV. 14, 1905.

8 SHEETSSHBET 1.

Swuewtoz APPLIUATION FILED NOV. 11,1904.

R I STEWART BUTTER CUTTING MAGHINE.

*Wn mgwaa PATENTED NOV. 14, 1905.

R. F. STEWART. BUTTER CUTTING MACHINE. APYLIG'ATION FILED NOV. 11, 19043 SHEETS-SHEE'1 Z.

No. 804,564. PATENTED NOV. 14, 1905. R. P. STEWART.

BUTTER CUTTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 11,1904.

3 SHEETS-SHBET 3.

IINITE Y RICHARD F. STEWART, OF POCANTICO HILLS, NEW YORK.

BUTTER-CUTTING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 14:, 1905.

Application filed November 11, 1904. Serial No. 232,321.

To ail whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, RICHARD F. STEWART, a citizen of the United States,residing at P0- cantico Hills, in the county of VVestchester and Stateof New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Butter-CuttingMachines, of which the following is a specification.

In an application filed by me September 10, 1904c, serially numbered223,982, I have described a machine for cutting butter, said machinebeing designed for reducing a package or tub of butter to determinedsizes, such as one-pound lumps, in an expeditious manner and withoutshrinkage in the aggregate weight of the lumps from the weight of theoriginal package.

The machine of the application aforesaid is characterized by mechanismfor subdividing the tub package of butter into rectangular bars, thesebars in turn being divided into lumps or cakes of the requisite weight,and means is provided also for preparing the waste or irregular cuttingsof butter by molding, so that such cuttings may be formed into bars andthen cut up into lumps.

The present machine in its general features resembles the machine of myearlier application; but it is designed especially for forming thebutter into cylindrical bars or rolls, shaping and packing such bars tothe desired diameter, and severing sections or lumps from said shapedand packed rolls of a size sufiicient to fill the box or pail in whichthe lumps are retailed.

The present machine comprises as its essential features avertically-moving frame having a series of annular cutters to divide theoriginal tub package into rolls, a cylindrical chamber having acompressible lining which receives the roll and if need be com pressesit to the desired diameter, means for forcing the roll through thechamber, a semi: cylindrical receiving-table to which the roll passesfrom the chamber, and severing means for cutting off one or moresections or cylindrical lumps from the roll as it lies upon thereceiving-table.

In order that the invention may be better understood by those skilled inthe art, I have illustrated in the accompanying drawings one embodimentof the same, and in said drawings Figure 1 is a plan view of the machineconstructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a detail View ofa portion of the vertical cutter-frame to show one of the cuttingrings.Fig. 3 is a view in end elevation of the vertical cutter-frame. Fig. 4cis a longitudinal section of a portion of the roll-chamber, showing thecompressible lining. Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view on line 5 5of Fig. i. Fig. 6 is an end view of the rollchamber, and Figs. 7, 8, and9 are detail views of the cutting mechanism for severing the rolls intosections. Fig. 10 is a detail view of the lower end of one of thevertical cutterframe racks to show its position when the cutter-frame istilted.

Referring to the drawings by numerals, like numerals indicating likeparts in the several views, 1 denotes the table or platform of thevertical cutter, upon which the package of butter from the tub'isplaced. Said table 1 is provided with raised surfaces 2, divided fromone another by regularly arranged grooves or interstices 3, whichreceive the annular cutting-rings, presently to be described.Reciprocating vertically above said table 1 is the vertical cutter,which comprises a rectangular frame 5, having secured within it by meansof suitable supports 6, secured to the sides of the frame, a pluralityof cutters, preferably though not necessarily annular. In the presentinstance two complete rings 7 are shown, and the other rings 8 areincomplete, so that in cutting up a tub package of butter two completerolls will be formed by the rings 7, while the rolls formed by rings 8will have cut-away places owing to the arrangement of rings shown. Suchincomplete rolls as are formed by rings 8 it is purposed to bring tocylindrical form by combining with them the waste cuttings, or, if needbe, other butter, as they are passed through the chamber, all as willhereinafter be set forth.

In order to firmly brace the annular cutting-rings and render themperfectly rigid, so that they will not be bent upwardly and displacedwhen they are forced through a package of hard butter, I provide bracingmeans for these annular cutters, which, as shown in the presentinstance, consists of a horizontally-arranged cross-bar 71, which ismounted upon supports 72, secured to the sides of the rectangular frame5, as clearly shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3. Secured to said cross-bar 71is a depending brace-rod 73, the lower end of which is riveted orotherwise scoured to the annular cutters 7, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2,so that any upward thrust of the cutting-rings as they are forcedthrough a package of butter is received by the bracerod 7 3 and thecross-bar 71, and great rigidity and strength are given to the annularcutters.

The vertical cutter has the depending arms 9, which slide in suitableways 10 on the machine-frame, one edge of the arms being formed as arack 11, which is engaged by a pinion 12 on the shaft 13, said shafthavinga worm-wheel 14, which is driven by a worm 15 on a shaft 16,mounted in suitable bearings in the machine-frame and adapted to bedriven by a crank 17 or in any suitable manner. By this arrangement ofvertical cutter and driving mechanism the cutter may be elevated to theproper height, a tub package of butter placed upon the table, and thecutter may then be drawn downward through the package, so that theannular cutters will divide the package into rolls.

It will be observed that the rings 7 and 8 drop into the interstices orgrooves 3 in the table 1 when they reach the downward limit of theirmovement, so that the package of butter is out completely through andperfect rolls are formed, the package resting upon the raised surfaces2. The package having been divided into rolls by the vertical cutter,said cutter is swung to one side, the rounded lower ends of the racks 9(see Fig. 10) permitting tilting of the vertical cutter to one side,rocking on the pinions 12 without withdrawing the racks from theirguides or ways 7 until it rests upon the spring-supports 18, leaving thetable readily accessible for the removal of the cut rolls.

The rolls are separately removed and placed in a chamber 19, mounted ona suitable frame 20, the chamber and vertical cutting apparatus beingplaced in juxtaposition for convenience in handling the butter. Saidchamber 19 is preferably though not necessarily cylindrical in form anddivided horizontally, so that its upper half, which is hinged at 21, maybe raised to permit insertion of the roll in the chamber, acounterweight 22 being secured to an arm 23 on the movable upper half ofthe chamber to render the raising and lowering of the upper half of thechamber easy. The movable upper half of the chamber is locked in closedposition by means of a locking crossbar 24 (see Fig. 1) in the samemanner as the top of the mold box or chamber shown in my applicationhereinbefore referred to.

Within the chamber is a reciprocating head 25, which is actuated in thesame manner and by similar means as the head or compressing plunger ofthe cutting-machine of my application referred to, such plunger or headactuating means comprising a pair of pinions 26, (dotted lines, Fig. 1,)meshing with racks on the bars 27 of the plunger, said pinions 26 beingmounted on a shaft having a worm-wheel 28 meshing with and driven by aworm 29 on a shaft 30, which last-named shaft has a bevel'gear 31, whichmeshes with a bevel-gear 32 on a hand or power operated shaft 33 at theside of themachine-frame.

It will be obvious that as the plunger or head 25 is moved forward inthe chamber it will force the roll of butter through the cylindricalbore of the same, said chamber preferably having a lining 3a of enameledmetal to give a smooth clean interior surface. The delivery end of theenamel lining is split and lapped, as shown in Figs: 4, 5, and 6, theend of the lining projecting beyond the chamber (see Fig. 1) and havinga compressor 35 around it, so that by tightening the compressing-ring 35the delivery end of the chamber will be tapered, as shown in Fig. i, soas to pack the butter solidly as it is delivered, the amount ofcompression being regulated by means of the compressing-ring 35. Thisconstruction of tapered delivery-chamber is of particular advantage inconnection with the incomplete rolls formed by the cutters 8 of thevertical cutter or in connection with Waste cuttings and fragments ofbutter which it is desired to mold into rolls. In shaping the incompleterolls or in utilizing fragments the butter is placed in the chamber,additional butter being put in to fill the spaces in the incompleteroll. The mass is then forced forward by the plunger or head 25 andpassing through the tapering delivery end of the chamber is packed intoa solid roll. It will be seen that by making the lining of a continuoussheet lapped upon itself a tapered and adjustable chamber having apractically unbroken inner surface is provided, the only break being theline where the lapped edges come together. This construction preventsmarring the roll of butter or its escape through side openings or slits,so that all the butter is delivered in a substantially smoothperfectly-formed roll. As the roll of butter issues from the deliveryend of the chamber it passes to a table, which is made up of one or morehalf-round or semicylindrical sections 36, supported on themachine-frame, the diameter of these table-seetions 36 beingsubstantially the same as that of the mold, so that the roll passesreadily from the mold to the table and without defacement.

While I have shown the receiving-table as semicylindrical incross-section, it will be understood that it may be of polygonal contourin cross-section, the only object being to provide a receiving-tablewhich will readily receive the butter-roll and hold it from displacementduring the ln m p-cutting operation, presently to be described.

Adjacent the roll-receiving table is the cutting apparatus for cuttingthe shaped and packed roll into sections, such cutter being shown in thepresent instance as aframe having U-shaped bows 37, provided withsupporting-arms 38, pivoted at their lower end to the machine-frame, thearms 38 being long, so as to have the pivotal point of the cutting- IIOframe at a distance from and centrally beneath the receiving-table andpermit the cutting instrumentalities to move in substantially a straightline across the roll of cutter to be severed. Mounted on the U-shapedbows 37 are bars 39, to which are adjustably secured, by means ofset-screws, clamps 40, provided with eyes 41 to receive the ends ofWires 42, which serve as severing devices, thumb-nuts 43 being providedfor tightening the Wires 42.

Normally the cutter-frame stands in the position shown in Fig. 8. WVhenthe roll has been forced out of the mold onto the semicylindricalcutting-table, said cutter is swung forward, the wires passing betweenthe separated sections of the receiving-table and severing the roll, theU-shaped bows straddling the table-sections and preventing any part ofthe cutter-frame from striking the butter roll, while at the same timeit carries the cutting- Wires completely through the table and roll.

It will be seen that the peculiar trough-shaped receiving-table holdsthe butter roll securely and prevents its displacement under the cuttingthrust of the severing devices. The end of the shaped and packed roll isthus cut off into one or more sections or rounded lumps at a time, twobeing shown in the present in stance, and further movement of the rollunder the action of the plunger forces these severed sections off thetable into pails or boxes, in which they are retailed or handled.

It will be understood that while I have described a particularconstruction and that the best now known to me I do not restrict myselfto the details of construction shown and described except so far as I amlimited by the terms of the appended claims, for it is obvious that thestructure shown may be considerably varied within the range ofmechanical skill Without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is

1. In a butter-cutting machine and in combination, a cylindrical packingand shaping chamber formed of a single lapped sheet, means for forcingbutter through said chamber, and means for varying the degree ofpressure on the butter at the delivery end of said chamber.

2. In a butter-cutting machine and in combination, a cylindrical packingand shaping chamberformed of asingle lapped sheet, means for forcingbutter through said chamber, and means for varying the diameter of saidchamber at its delivery end.

3. In a butter-cutting machine and in combination, a cylindrical packingand shaping chamber formed of a single lapped sheet, means for forcingbutterthrough said chamber, and

means for compressing said delivery end to vary the diameter thereof.

4. In a butter-cutting machine and in combination, a cylindrical packingand shaping chamber, means for forcing the butter through said chamber,a lining for said chamber formed of a single lapped sheet and haying acompressible delivery end, and means for compressing said lining to varythe diameter of its delivery end.

5. In a butter-cutting machine and in com bination, a compressiblecylindrical packing and shaping chamber, means for forcing butterthrough said chamber, means for compressing said chamber to vary thediameter of the delivery end of said chamber, a semicylindricalreceiving-table to receive the butter roll from said chamber and hold itagainst lateral movement, and a cutter movable in a substantiallyhorizontal path to cut a section from said roll.

6. In a butter-cutting machine and in combination, a compressiblecylindrical packing and shaping chamber, means for forcing butterthrough said chamber, means for compressing said chamber to vary thediameter of the delivery end of said chamber, a multipartsemicylindrical receiving-table to receive the butter roll from saidchamber and hold it against lateral movement, and a cutter movable in asubstantially horizontal path to cut a plurality of sections from saidroll.

7. In a butter-cutting machine and in combination, a supporting-frame; amultipart semicylindrical receiving-table to receive the butter and holdit against lateral movement,

a horizontally-movable U-shaped cutter-frame pivoted in operativerelation to said table and adapted to straddle and completely embracesaid table in making its cutting movement, and a plurality ofcutting-wires spanning said U-shaped frame and adapted to traverse theinterstices of said multipart table and divide the butter therein intosections.

8. In a butter-cutting machine, the combination with a semicylindricalreceiving-table, of a swinging cutter comprising a relatively longsupporting-arm pivoted centrally beneath said table and having asubstantially U-shaped frame at its upper end adapted to embrace saidreceiving-table when the cutter is swung through its cutting-arc, and asevering-wire spanning the open end of said U- shaped frame.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

RICHARD F. STEWART. I/Vitnesses:

WVM. D. HUMrHRnYs, H. C. TIMBERMAN.

